Load-equalizing trailer hitch device



AU@ l, 1950 H. sPlTLER 2,517,047

LoAD-EQuALIzING TRAILER HITCH DEVICE Filed Dec. 5, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2F'/ G. 5. 4 3:I 30 29 57 30 FE'IIM IVENTOR. n?? HAE 01. o 51D/ 72. 2,

ATTORNEYS.

Patente rr l, 1950 6 Claims.

This invention relates to automobile trailer couplers, and moreparticularly to load-equalizing means for use in a trailer couplerdevice for enabling the automobile drawing the trailer to maintain alevel position at all times and to enable the automobile to draw thetrailer without impairment of the riding quality of the automobile.

A main object of the invention is to provide a novel and improvedtrailer hitch attachment for use in the hitch connection between aloaded trailer and the automobile which is to draw the trailer, saidattachment being simple in con struction, easy to install, and providinga oush ioning action for vertical movements of the trailer relative tothe automobile, whereby the riding quality of the automobile will not besubstantially affected adversely by the connection of the loaded trailerthereto, even under rough and bumpy road conditions.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved automobiletrailer hitch structure, wherein the automobile will not be depressed atits rear portion by the load imposed thereon by the trailer, thereforeallowing the headlight beams of the automobile to be directed in thesame manner as when the trailer is not attached to the automobile,wherein road shocks experienced by the trailer will not be transmittedto the automobile, and wherein lateral whipping of the trailer when itis towed by the automobile is controlled and cushioned to a substantialextent.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparentfrom the following description and claims, and from the accompanyingdrawings, wherein:

Figure l is a top plan view of a trailer hitch structure according tothe present invention, showing the use of the hitch structure to connecta trailer to the rear portion of an automobile chassis;

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the structure oi Figure l, theautomobile chassis being shown partly in longitudinal cross-section;

Figure 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional detail view taken on line t-ilof Figure 2;

Figure i is an enlarged cross-sectional detail view taken on line lil-Liof Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional detail view taken on line ii-t of Figurei;

Figure 6 is an enlarged cross-sectiona1 detail view taken on line t-t ofFigure 2;

Figure 'l is an enlarged cross-sectional detail view taken on line i-lof Figure '1;

Figure 8 is an enlargedcross-sectional detail view taken on line t-t ofFigure 6.

ilu

Figure 9 is an enlarged cross-sectlonal detail view taken on line ill-9of Figure 3;

Figure 10 is a detail view taken on line lt-lu of Figure 9;

Figure 11 is a cross-sectional detail view taken on line ll-li of Figure10;

Figure l2 is a fragmentary cross-sectional detail view similar to thelower portion of Figure 5, but illustrating an alternative method ofsecuring the resilient rear bearing arm of the hitch structure to thetransverse fastening plates of said hitch structure;

Figure 13 is a cross-sectional detail view 'taken on line iiilit ofFigure 12.

Referring to the drawings, il designates the chassis of an automobile,said chassis being con ventional in structure and including thelongitudinal frame members 23, it! and the transverse rear frame membermi. The gasoline tank is designated at it. Secured transversely to theend of the automobile chassis frame is the usual rear bumper it.

Designated at il? is a trailer provided with the converging hitch arms2t, it which are connected at their forward ends by the trianglar coverplate 29, said cover plate 29 being formed with a downwardly-facing ballseat 3W. Secured beneath the mid portions of frame member 2t and bumper.fili is the lower arm of a rearwardly-extending Z-bracket ti. Securedtransversely to the upper arm of said Z-bracket is an elongated platemember 32, said plate member being secured to the Z-bracket by a flangedstud 33 provided with a fastening nut 3i. The top end of stud 353comprises a ball element tti which is rotatably received in the ballseat (it, as shown in Figure i.

As shown in Figure 5, the cover plate 2i is provided with a pivoteddetent member it which is releasably locked in rearward engagement withball element 35 by means of a rotatable 'ibolt 3l threadedly engagedwith cover plate 29. The head of' T-bolt Sill is received in an undercutrecess in detent member it. By rotating the T-bolt 3l a quarter-turnfrom the position shown :'n Figure 5, the head thereof may be disengagedfrom the undercut recess releasing detent member 36 and allowing thecover plate it to be lifted oli the ball element 35.

Clamped to the axle housings indicated at it, 22 are the respectivedepending brackets it, said brackets each having an inwardly-directedhorizontal liange 39 carrying an upstanding ball element lill.Designated at il', il are respective rearwardly-converging bars, eachbar being provided with a bearing cap element t2 rotatably receiving oneof the ball elements till. as shown in Figures 6, 7 and 8. The bearingcap elements 42 are provided with pivoted ball-engaging detent members43, each being biased into engagement with the ball element itassociated therewith by a spring 44 bearing between the detent memberand the adjacent inner wall surface of the bearing cap element, as shownin Figure 8. Connected to each detent member lil is a retractablerelease rod i5 slldably carried in depending apertured lugs 46 providedon the associated bar 4|. The rear end of each rod t5 passes through adepending apertured lug di carried by the associated bar di and isformed with a ring Q8. Encircling the rear particu of each rod d5 is acoiled spring i9 bearing between a transverse pin 50 carried by the rod,and the lug di, whereby the rod is biased forwardly. By reti-acting therod d5 against the biasing force of the springs d@ and ed, the detentmember d3 associated therewith may be disengaged from its ball elementdi?, allowing the associated cap element i2 to be lited out ofengagement with the ball element.

The rear ends of the bars di, il are clamped between spaced transverseplate members 5|, 52 by means of bolts 53 passing through said platemembers and the intervening bars. Clamped to the top plate member 5|over each bar connection is the bottom turn of a conical coiled spring54. The top end of each spring 5&3 bears beneath an end portion of theupper transverse plate member S2. Depending rubber bumpers 55, 55 aresecured to the end portions of said plate member 32, each bumper 55being centered within the top end of one of the springs 5d, 5d.

Secured to the intermediate portion of plate member 5| by means of aVertical bolt 56 and a U-bolt 5l is a laminated rearwardly-extendingspring arm 58. Said spring arm may be secured in transverse overlyingrelation to the plate member 5|, as shown in Figures i and 5, oralternatively, may be secured transversely between the plate members 5|and 52, as shown in Figures 12 and 13. In the embodiment of Figures and5, the arms of U-bolt 5l pass through both plate members 5| and 52,spacer sleeves 59, 58 being provided on said arms between the platemembers. In the embodiment of Figures 12 and 13, the arms of the U-bolt,shown at 5l', pass through the plate members 5| and 52 on opposite sidesof the laminated spring arm 5B.

Secured to the rear end of the spring arm 58 is a rod member 60 formedwith a reduced shaft port-ion 6|' on which is journaled an elongatedroller 62. Roller 62 extends through an arcuate track loop 63 secured inhorizontal transverse position beneath the trailer hitch arms 28, 28 byrespective vertical brackets 65, 64. The brackets 64 are rigidlysecured, as by welding, at their lower ends to arcuate brace members 65carried by the track loop 63. The upper ends of the brackets 64 may beriveted or welded to the respective hitch arms 28, 28. The track loop 63is preferably fabricated from tubular stock of substantial rigidity. Asshown in Figures 3 and 9, the rolle-r 62 bears on the lower arm of thetrack loop 63 and is biased into engagement therewith by the laminatedspring arm 58. When the trailer angles laterally around the pivotalconnection provided between ball 35 and ball seat 30, whipping of thetrailer is retarded and damped by the frictional resistance of roller 62as it rotates on the lower arm of the track loop 63.

Under conditions of loading of the trailer which would ordinarily tendto depress the rear end of the automobile chassis 2|, load istransmitted to the plate member 5I through springs 54, |54. This load isopposed by a reaction developed in the beam defined by laminated springarm 58 and the bars 4i, 4|. This reaction is the result of reactionsdeveloped respectively at the ball supports 40 of the bars 4|, 4|, andat the bottom arm of the track loop 63. The trailer downward load actingon the ball 35 is, therefore, substantially transmitted to the axlehousings 22, 22 rather than to the chassis 2|. is, therefore, notdepressed at its rear portion by the trailer load and is allowed to rideat substantially its normal angle.

When traveling over rough or bumpy roads. oscillations of the trailer ina longitudinal plane will be cushioned by the springs 54, 54,- and bythe fiexure of the laminated spring arm 58. Said oscillations will,therefore, be damped and will not be transmitted to the automobilechassis. Said chassis, of course, is separated from the wheel axlehousings 22, 22 by the usual supporting springs, shown for example at6B.

To disconnect the trailer from the automobile it is merely necessary todisconnect the bars 4|, @il from the ball members 40, 40 and todisconnect the ball seat 30 from the ball element 35, as previouslydescribed.

As shown in Figure l, the curvature of the track loop 63 issubstantially centered at the vertical axis passing through the mainball element 35.

While a specific embodiment of an improved trailer hitch structure hasbeen disclosed in the foregoing description, it will be understood thatvarious modifications within the spirit of the invention may occur tothose skilled in the art. Therefore, it is intended that no limitationsbe placed on the invention except as defined by the scope of theappended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A hitch structure for connecting a trailer to an automobile,comprising a ball member carried by the rear portion of the automobilechassis, a ball seat carried by the trailer tongue, said seat beingengageable over said ball member, a beam member pivotally connected to arear axle housing of the automobile, a transverse support carried by thetrailer tongue and underlying the rear end portion of said beam member,and compressible spring means interposed between the forward end of thetongue and said beam member.

2. A hitch structure for connecting a trailer to an automobile,comprising an upstanding ball member secured to the rear portion of theautomobile chassis, a ball seat carried at the forward end of thetrailer tongue, said seat being engageable over said ball member, arearwardly-extending beam member pivotally connected to the rear axlehousings of the automobile, a transverselyextending track loop carriedby the trailer tongue, the rear end portion of said beam member beingreceived in said track loop and being movable laterally thereinresponsive to lateral angling of the trailer with respect to theautomobile, and compressible spring means interposed between the forwardend portion of the trailer tongue and said beam member.

3. A hitch structure for connecting a. trailer to an automobile,comprising an upstanding ball member secured to the rear portion of theautomobile chassis, a ball seat carried at the forward end of thetrailer tongue, said seat being engageable over said ball member,rearwardly-converging arms pivotally connected to the respectivev rearaxle housings of the automobile. junction The chassis 2 means connectingthe rear ends of said arms, a resilient arm secured to said junctionmeans and extending rearwardly therefrom, a dependingtransversely-extending track loop carried by the intermediate portion ofthe trailer tongue and receiving the end portion of said resilient arm,said resilient arm being movable laterally in said track loop responsiveto lateral angling of the trailer with respect to the automobile. andforce transmitting means interposed between the forward end portion ofthe trailer tongue and said junction means.

Ll. A hitch structure for connecting a trailer to an automobile,comprising an upstanding ball member secured to the rear portion of theautomobile chassis, a ball seat carried at the forward end of thetrailer tongue, said seat being engageable over said ball member,rearwardly-converging arms pivotally connected to the respective rearaxle housings oi' the automobile. junction means connecting the rearends of said arms, a resilient arm secured to said junction means andextending rearwardly therefrom, a roller journaled on the end of saidresilient arm. a

depending transversely-extending track loop carried by the intermediateportion of the trailer tongue and receiving said roller, the rollerbeing rotatable laterally in said track loop responsive to lateralangling oi the trailer with respect to the automobile, and compressibleforce-transmitting spring means interposed between the forward enelportion of the trailer tongue and said junction means.

5. A. hitch structure for connecting a trailer to an automobilecomprising a ball member carried by the rear portion of the automobilechassis, a ball seat carried by the trailer tongue. said seat beingengageable over said bail member. a beam member pivotally connected tothe chassis of the automobile, a support carried by the trailer tongueand underlying said beam member, and compressible spring meansinterposed between the tongue and said beam member.

6. A bitch structure for connecting a trailer to an automobile.comprising a ball member` carried by the rear portion of the automobilechassis. a ball seat carried by the trailer tongue, said seat beingengageable over said ball member, a beam member pivotally connected tothe chassis of the automobile, a support carried by the trailer tongueand underlying said beam member, and compressible spring meansinterposed between the tongue and said beam member forwardly of saidsupport.

HAROLD SPITLER.

REFERENCES- CITED The following references are of record in the ille o!this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,238,095 Almerantz Apr. 15, 19412,453,941 Smit -...t Nov. 16, 1948

